Fuel-feeding apparatus.



PATENTED AUG. 22, 1905.

0. E. WILSON. FUEL F-EEDING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION-FILED FEB. 11l 1905.

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R n N m w PATENTED AUG. 22, 1905.

0. E. WILSON. FUEL PEEDING APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION FILED rms. 11. 1905.

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FUEL PEBDING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 11. 1905.

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FUEL PBEDING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 11. 1905.

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FUEL FBBDING APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION FILED FEB. 11. 1905.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OSBORNE ERNEST WILSON, OF HUYTON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNOR TO EDMUND KNOWLES MUSPRATT AND HOLBROOK GASKELL, THE YOUNGER, OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

FUEL-FEEDING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 22, 1905.

Application filed February l1, 1905. Serial No. 245,316.

T 0 @ZZ whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, OSBORNE ERNEST WIL- SON, engineer, a subject of the King of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Fernlea, Tarbock Road, Huyton, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented new and useful Fu el-Fceding Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatus for the feeding of fine fuel to furnaces, and is particularly designed as an improvement over that style of furnace in which a vibratory plate is used for opening and closing the discharge-orifice of the hopper containing the coal-dust to be supplied to the furnace, the said plate being operated to open the said orifice by overcoming the counteracting pressure of springs, which springs afterward return the said plate to its closed position to shake and break up the fuel. It is found in practice that beyond the general objections to the use of springs in such apparatus the said springs are also open to the objection that they do not always act properly, and this is especially the case when there is a considerable depth of fuel in the hopper, as the weight of this fuel overcomes the strength of the springs and prevents the said vibrating plate from being returned to the closing position by the springs and the fuel is not properly broken up or passes the said plate, so as to clog and interfere with the proper supply of fuel to the furnace.

It is the object of my invention to overcome this objection, which I do by effecting the closing movements of the said vibrating plate by mechanical means such as will insure the proper closing movements of the said plate by positive action instead of using springs for the purpose. y

The said means may consist of cranks on a driven crank-shaft, the said cranks being connected by connecting-rods with levers or arms on the axis of the Vibrating plate, such axis projecting from each side of the hopper, or it may be eected by means of eccentrics or of cams working in slotted levers or arms connected with the axis of the said plate or by cam grooves in which engage projections from such levers or arms, or the plate may be operated by a rod or rods passing through openings in the casing and acting onk the back of the said plate; butI do not limit myself to these precise devices by which to effect such positive closing action, as it can, it will be evident, be effected by various positively-operating arrangements generally the mechanical equivalents of those aforesaid as distinguished from springs.

By the positive action according to my invention breaking up of coal-dust or like pulverulent fuel and its supply to the furnaces are effected with certainty and clogging of the passages and improper supply of the fuel are prevented.

In order that my invention may be well understood, I will describe, with reference to the accompanying drawings, means whereby my invention may be carried out; but I do not re- 'strict myself to the arrangements illustrated `and described.

Figures l and '2 are vertical elevations at rightangles to eachother of a pulverulent-fuelfeeding device comprising a rotary brush and vibratory plate and means according to my invention for mechanically operating the said vibratory plate inboth directions. Fig. 3 is a plan of the device; and Fig. 4, a transverse section on the line A A, Fig. 3. Figs. 5, 6, 7, and 8 are detached views of the mechanism by which the vibratory plate is operated, Fig. 8 being a section on the line B B, Fig. 5. Fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating the manner in which the stroke or movement of the vibratory plate can be varied. Fig. 10 is a transverse section of the lower part of a hopper similar to Fig. 4., but arranged to discharge the pulverulent fuel into a screw conveyer instead of a rotary brush; and Fig. 11 is an elevation at right angles to Fig. 10, drawn to a smaller scale and showing the entire hopper.

Referring to Figs. l to 8, l is the lower part of a hopper in which the pulverulent fuel to be fed into the furnace is placed. In this lower part of the hopper is fitted the vibratory plate 2, the shaft or axis 3 of which plate is mounted in bearings in the two opposite plates or cheeks 4 of the hopper. On one end of the shaft or axis 3, which projects outside the hopper, is an arm 5, by means of which vibratory motion is imparted to the plate 2 in the manner hereinafter described. In this lower part 1 of the hopper above the vibratory plate 2 is a rotary agitator or stirrer 6 to maintain the of. the hopper.

pulverulent fuel in a disintegrated condition, so that it will pass the plate 2 in a divided condition into the lowermost part of the hopper when the plate 2 is vibrated and be driven by the rotary brush 7 in a fine state of division into the furnace. On one end of the shaft or axis 8 of the rotary brush is fixed a pulley 9, by means of which rotation can be imparted to the brush from any suitable motor, and from the shaft or axis of this brush rotation can be transmitted to the agitator or stirrer 6 by a strap 10, passing round pulleys 11 and 12, mounted, respectively, on the shafts or axes 8 and 13. Fast on the shaft or axis 8 is an eccentric 14. The rod 15, operated by the eccentric, is jointed to the lower end of a lever 16, fulcrumed at 24 to the hopper. l The lever 16 is provided with a curved slot or channel 17, in which is fitted to slide a block or cod-piece 18, which is connected by a link 19 to the outer end of the arm 5 on the shaft or axis of the vibratory plate 2, it being also connected by al link 20 to an arm 21, projecting from a segmental toothed rack 22, mounted on a stud 23 on the side of the hopper 1. When the brush 7 iis rotating, the eccentric 14 imparts, through the rod 15, oscillating motion tothe lever 16, and

if the block or cod-piece 18 is in the positionv shown in Fig. 1, in which position the fulcrum 24 of the lever 16 is in axial line with the pin 25, so thatthe lever 16 will simply turn on its fulcrum 24, and no movement will be trans-I mitted to the vibratory plate 2, the lower end of which plate will remain in contact with the side of the hopper, and no fuel will pass to beneath the said plate 2. By adjusting the block or cod-piece 18 inthe slot or channel 17 to a position below the fulcrum 24 of the lever 16 the oscillations of the said lever will be transmitted, through the link 19 and arm 5, to the vibratory plate 2 to a greater or less extent, according to the distancethe block or cod-piece is adjusted from the fulcrum 24, and consequently allow more or less of the pulverulent fuel to pass the lower end of the plate 2 .at each vibration. Onthe lower edge of the plate 2 is fixed an adjustable blade 26, which when the plate 2 completes its closing stroke or movement comes into contact with a strip 27 of suitable hard material inserted in a recess in the side A convenient means for adjusting the position of the block or cod-piece 18 in the slot or channel 17 is shown in the drawings and consists of a worm 28, gearing with the segmental rack 22, the shaft 29, on which the worm is keyed, being provided with a hand-wheel 80, by which the worm can be rotated to operate the rack in any desired direction to raise or lower the block or codpiece 18,.and thus regulate the quantity of pulverulent fuel admitted at each stroke to the lowermost part of the hopper, in which the rotary brush works.

Fig. 9 shows in full lines and in dotted lines, respectively, theextreme positions of a stroke of the plate 2 and its operating mechanism. f

In the arrangement illustrated by Figs. 10 and 11 the mechanism for vibrating the plate 2 may be similar to that herein before described; but instead of a pulley 9 being carried on the shaft or axis 8 a toothed pinion 31 is fast thereon, which pinion gears with a spurwheel 32, fast on the shaft of a screw conveyer 33, fitted to rotate in a tube or trough 34, arranged beneath and communicating with the lowermost end of the hopper 1, into which tube or trough falls the pulverulent fuel which passes the plate 2, the said fuel being forced along the tube or trough by the screw conveyer 33 into the furnace or into any desired receptaclein connection with the furnace. The axis 8 Vneed not be driven, as shown, from the shaft of the conveyer; but the said conveyer and the axis 8 may be driven independently from any convenient source.

I claim as my invention-- 1. For regulating or governing the supply of coal-dust, or like pulverulent fuel, to furnaces, the combination of a hopper to contain the fuel, a vibratory plate in the hopper, means for positively operating the vibratory plate in both directions to close or regulate the passage for fuel from the hopper, an arm on the axis of the vibratory plate connected to an adjustable block, a slotted lever in which the block can be adjusted and means for irnparting oscillatory motions to the slotted lever.

2. For regulating or governing the supply of coal-dust, or like pulverulent fuel, to furnaces, the combination of a hopper to contain the fuel, a vibratory plate in the hopper to close or regulate the passage for the fuel from the hopper, means for varying the extent of the vibration of the vibratory plate While the apparatus is in -motion, an arm on the axis of the vibratory plate connected to an adjustable block, a slotted lever in whichl the block can be adjusted, and means for imparting oscillatory motion to the slotted lever.

3. In a furnace-feeding device, a hopper to contain the fuel, a vibratory plate for governing the passage for the fuel from the hopper, and an adjustable blade on the lower edge of the vibratory plate. 4

4. In a fuel-feeding device, the combination with a hopper to contain the fuel, and a vibratory plate for regulating the passage of the fuel from the hopper, of a strip of hard metal in or on the side of the hopper against which the lower end of the vibratory plate comes into contact;

5. In a fuel-feeding device, the combination of a hopper to contain the fuel, a vibratory plate in the lower part of. the hopper, an arm on the axis of the `vibratory plate, a link connecting the said arm to a block, a

swinging lever having a curved slot therein in which slot the said block is adjustable, and means for imparting oscillatory motion to the swinging lever.

6. In a fuel-feeding device, the combination of a'hopper to contain the fuel, a vibratory plate in the vlower part of the hopper, an arm 0n the axis of the vibratory plate, a link connecting the said arm to a block, a swinging lever having a curved slot therein in which slot the said block is adjustable, a segmental rack connected by an arm and a link to the block, a worm engaging the seg- OSBORNE ERNEST WILSON.

Witnesses JOSEPH T. NIoKsoN, GUsT. L. EssEEN. 

